A flute generally includes three main parts: a headjoint, a centerjoint, and a footjoint. The flute headjoint is the portion of the musical instrument comprised of a length of tube (referred to as the headjoint tube) having one closed end and one open end which is fitted to the centerjoint (also referred to as the main body of the flute). The footjoint connects to the centerjoint/main body.
The headjoint further includes a holed lip plate mounted on the top of the headjoint tube by way of a chimney, which is a short length of tube extending between and connecting the lip plate and the headjoint tube. The lip plate hole, the chimney, and a hole through the top of the headjoint tube define an air passage between the lip plate hole and the interior of the headjoint tube. This passage is called the blow hole.
A high quality headjoint has a tonal quality determined by empirical manufacturing techniques. High quality headjoints are made by master craftsmen and are very expensive.
Traditional headjoint manufacturing techniques are imprecise. The geometry of the passageway through the chimney is critical to sound quality. Typically, the chimney is manufactured with the desired geometry. A first end of the chimney is then soldered to a lip plate devoid of a hole. After the chimney is soldered to the lip plate, the lip plate hole is carved by hand in the lip plate to approximate the shape and dimension of the chimney passageway at the first end of the chimney.
The chimney-lip plate assembly is then soldered to a holeless headjoint tube. More specifically, a second end of the chimney is soldered to the headjoint tube. Again, the craftsman must then carve a hole in the headjoint tube that attempts to approximate the shape and dimension of the chimney passageway at the second end of the chimney. In this way, the lip plate hole, passageway through the chimney, and the hole in the headjoint tube align to form the blow hole.
The geometry of the blow hole (and thus the shape of the holes in the lip plate and the headjoint tube) is essential to create a pure and consistent sound. However the method by which these holes are made (i.e., handmade) injects variability into the manufacturing process, rendering it virtually impossible to accurately and consistently reproduce headjoints having the desired dimensions.
Moreover, traditional manufacturing techniques limit the universe of metals available for manufacture into a flute headjoint and more specifically into a headjoint tube. The density, hardness, and workability of a metal is critical to the ultimate manufacture and performance of the high quality headjoint and particularly the headjoint tube. Flute headjoints have been made traditionally from sterling silver, gold, platinum, and stainless steel.
Other materials exist, however, with density and hardness characteristics equal or superior to gold, silver, platinum, and stainless steel. Such materials include, but are not limited to, tantalum, niobium and other refractory group metals. These materials present a problem when assembling the headjoint tube with the rest of the headjoint according to traditional methods, however. More specifically, the surfaces of these metals are relatively inert—they lack cohesion and therefore cannot be soldered or brazed. Because these materials are not conducive to traditional headjoint bonding techniques (i.e., soldering), and other available bonding techniques such as epoxies or adhesives do not provide a strong enough bond to hold the chimney to the tube, these materials have been considered unsuitable for use in flute headjoints and more particularly in the headjoint tube body. Thus, it would be desirable to provide a headjoint that can be assembled by means other than soldering so as to make available materials that have heretofore been unsuitable for use in headjoints.
In addition, the soldering process softens the headjoint tube. Since hardness is another critical requirement for the performance of a high quality headjoint, soldering actually reduces the performance of the flute. Accordingly, alternative methods for connecting the chimney to the headjoint tube would also be desirable.